Labour MPs fear chancellor’s tough budget will bring new set of problems

Concerns from party that significant cuts to key departments will set damaging tone for new government

When Rachel Reeves stands up in the Commons on Wednesday, her budget will end months of speculation, allowing the government to fully set out what it stands for. And that, some Labour MPs fear, might herald a whole new set of problems.

For all the expectation management about a disastrous economic inheritance and the fabled 22bn fiscal black hole, the sheer lack of money and tight constraints over tax rises mean that however well Reeves presents her choices, many of them will be painful.